Let it hereby stand that as of 10:35 this morning (in the heart of my geology class), I have a new favorite dinosaur. This is a big deal. I mean, I feel like I think about and blog about dinosaurs a lot, and ol' Velociraptor has been a favorite for a good long while.
But.
Behold.
The Lystrosaurus:
Not convinced? Okay here's another:
Look at those tusks!! He has tusks AND a beak. How many creatures can claim THAT?
Here's a model:
And my personal favorite picture:
AHHHH. Too cute. I can't handle it. This picture makes it look like he has swag. He reminds me of this street smart dog/Billy Joel - amiright?
But, lest you think I'm shallow - the reason I am such a fan of this little guy is NOT just his looks. No, this guy laid down his life for the sake of science. Okay, maybe that's a bit of a stretch. But because he DID die and his remains were fossilized, we have fossiliferous (that is a real word. Yes, I do use it as often as humanly possible) evidence to support continental drift which later developed into the theory of plate tectonics which is arguably the greatest discovery in all of GEOLOGY which is my FAVORITE SUBJECT!!
Check out this map:
Isn't that cool? Sweet little Lystrosaurus, saving the world, basically. Or at least validating geological propositions.
But wait, there's more. Did you think he was cute in those pictures? Yes, of course you did. Well, SURPRISE! It gets even CUTER when you learn that he was:
THE SIZE OF A SMALL PIG!!
Dying. Just gushing forth with love.
So, I just felt like I needed to share this with you. I hope you don't think I'm being unfair to Velocirapt. It was a good run, you know? But it's time to move on. It's not you, it's me (and my adorable new love).
4 comments :
On a maybe sacrilegious note, I sure hope that there are dinosaurs in heaven!!! I want to see this little guy in real life!
He would make such a cute pet! Not quite as cuddly as a cat, but still basically lap-sized. I am okay with you replacing velocirapt with this new favorite - especially since he plays such an important role in geology.
I don't know about this. I just don't know. I think I feel.... a little bit betrayed? If I think of him in terms of a common reptile, then it's cool, like an oversized iguana, or a gila monster. But in terms of a dinosaur, which should be either be large and terrifying or silly for its size (T-Rex with tiny arms is a perfect example) I just don't know. he's small and cutesy. Is this really the route you want to take Melissa? Is it? Think hard.
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